The Little Mermaid With Large Eyebrows
by PrudishFiction
Summary: Arthur is the prince of the merpeople. But, when he sees the handsome prince Alfred, he will do anything to gain legs. Even if it means going to the sea witch Ursula


The Little Mermaid

A ship sailed through the sea, it's crew working hard, although cheerfully. Near the helm, a blond man stands with his dog, a sheepdog, and looks out over the sea. "Isn't this great? The salty air, the wind in your face? Hahahaha! I love sailing!" he grins, a trademark grin that only he, Prince Alfred, can pull off. His assistant raises his head from emptying his stomach over the edge of the ship, ad answers sarcastically. "Yes... Wonderful, aru"

"Ah, a strong wind and a following sea. Looks like King Tritons stirring up a friendly typhoon!" one of the sailors says, and Alfred goes to help tie down a sail. "King Triton?" he asks, and another sailor chuckles. "Aye. Ruler of the merpeople. Thought every sailor knew about him"

"My prince, please don't listen to this... Nautical nonsense." Yao, the assistant, says, having recovered from his seasickness. "It's not nonsense, it's the truth!" the sailor shouts. "Deep down there, they live!"

That day was a special day; there was going to be a performance by Arthur, King Tritons youngest (and favorite) son, and everyone was excited because the teen had the best voice out of all of them. Trident sits at the throne and waits, the usually bitter king having a small smile on his face. Francis, a small crab conducting the choir, however, was the only one not excited. Arthur hadn't shown up yet, and this worried Francis because he didn't want to be the one to tell the king that his son wasn't there. But, it was soon time for him to start the performance, Arthur or no Arthur. He goes up to the podium and taps on it with his conducting baton, signaling the start of the performance. The orchestra begins to play and the choir of mermaids sing as a giant oyster shell makes it's way on stage as they near the presentation of Arthur. But, when it opens, it's completely empty, and the mermaids stop singing. Francis looks towards the throne fearfully as Tritons face grows angry. "Arthur!" the king yells, even though he knows his son can't hear him.

Meanwhile, Arthur is swimming around the darker areas of the ocean with his closest friend, a flounder named Mattie. Although Mattie is hesitant to be in this part of the sea and going to explore a sunken ship, no less, he follows Arthur anyway, hoping to deter him. "I-I'm not so sure about this..." he says, swimming alongside Arthur. "Oh, don't be such a guppy. This is exciting." Arthur says, and begins pulling at one of the windows on the sunken ship. "B-but what if there's ghosts? Or something dangerous?" Arthur ignores him, opening the window and seeming satisfied about himself. "We came all this way. Come on." he swims trough the window easily, as he is rather scrawny compared to other mermen, and Mattie follows him, sighing softly. Arthur swims around the inside, looking around excitedly "This is so amazing..." he picks up a pipe from a table, and looks at it curiously. "What do you think this is...?" he asks, not seeing the shark that goes by the window. "D-did you hear something?" Mattie asks, swimming closer to arthur and looking around fearfully. Arthur picks up a piece of silverware. "I want to look around before the- the performance! It's probably started by now!" They turn to leave, but are blocked by a huge shark that had come up behind them. They scream, and swim away as fast as they can, dodging broken pieces of the ship as the shark chases them. Finally, they get out, but the shark is still close behind. Unable to swim very fast, Mattie is almost caught in its jaws, but Arthur grabs him and pulls him through the loop of an anchor. The shark tries to swim through it, but gets stuck and is unable to get out. Arthur takes Mattie's fin, and they swim away towards home.

Arthur swims into the throne room, where his father sits, his usual sour expression back in place and the end of his tail flicking impatiently. "Er... Hello, father..." Arthur says, swimming up to him. "Hello, Arthur." his father replies. "... Father, I... I'm sorry I missed the concert..." Arthur says quietly, looking down. "Arthur, your reckless be-"

"Selfish and reckless behavior!" Francis says angrily. "You ruined what was supposed to be the pinnacle of my career- for what? What were you doing that made you forget?"

"I-it's not entirely his fault!" Mattie interjects. "There was a shark! It was trying to eat us!"

"What? A shark?" Triton yells, making Arthur cringe slightly. "Why were you near a shark?"

"I... I was exploring the sunken ship..." Arthur looks down again, while King Tritons eyes widen "You didn't..."

"I was curious... It had interesting things inside..."

"Interesting things that could have cost you your life! I already forbade you from going there, and you disobey me!"

"But I'm fine, aren't I?" Arthur says, furrowing his brows. "That doesn't matter." Triton replies. "You could have been."

"But I'm not!" Arthur cries out, temper rising. "You aren't listening! You went against my rule that was put there /for your safety/!" Triton yells back, and narrows his eyes. "Did you take anything from the ship?"

"... No, I didn't. If you'll excuse me, I'm tired of being scolded for swimming around the territory I live in." he swims away towards his room, Mattie following him. "Arthur!" Triton calls after him, then sighs "Dammit..." Francis swims closer to Triton. "Now, calm down, sire. He is a child, oui? He will have his moments"

"Yes, but... He insists on going to these shipwrecks and taking things that belong to the humans. Doesn't he understand that doing things like that is dangerous?"

"Oui... Do not worry, your majesty. I'll go talk to him." He swims off.

However, Arthur is not in his room, instead going to a cavern sealed off with a large rock. The sea cave is filled to the brim with various artifacts from the surface, ranging from jewelry and valuables to cups and silverware. He puts away the new things he had found, humming softly to himself. He then sits on a bed of sediment, sighing softly. "I just don't understand... How can a place that makes such wonderful things be so bad...?" He looks up, and sees that a ship is passing overhead, and distant booming sounds reach him, bright colors filtering down from the surface. Excited and intrigued, he swims up until his face breaks the surface, and he sees the ship sailing on, fireworks going off above it and music drifting from the deck, a festival of sorts going on. He looks up at the fireworks, wide-eyed "That's... Amazing... I'm going to go check it out..."

"A-Arthur, wait... What if you get caught in a net?" Mattie protests as Arthur starts swimming closer to the ship. "I'll be fine. They look like they're having a party, anyway, so they won't pay attention to me." He climbs up the side of the ship, and watches the humans dance curiously. Then, he sees an extremely attractive man in the middle, laughing as he dances. He seems tall for a human, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist. He's wearing glasses, the eyes behind them a bright, startling blue, and has blond hair, one piece sticking up stubborn. The man is dancing with his dog, and Arthur stares at him, finding him to be quite striking and attractive. Then, the crews attention is directed towards Yao, who is standing next to a large thing covered with a blanket. "Silence, aru! We are here to celebrate the birthday of the esteemed Prince Alfred" Alfred smiles crookedly "Aw come on, Yao. I liked that song"

"Yes, by don't you want to know what your present from me is, aru?"

"... Alright, what is it?" Alfred asks, still smiling. "Your present, your highness..." Yao pulls the curtain off and reveals the object to be a large marble statue of Alfred in a brave pose. Alfred raises an eyebrow "... Striking"

"Indeed, aru!" he smiles. Alfred laughs slightly, and everyone goes back to dancing. Suddenly, a storm breaks out overhead. Lightning and thunder appear as the sky grows dark, and the wind picks up. "There's a hurricane coming! Secure the rigging!" a sailor yells, and Alfred runs to do just that. But, lightning strikes the ship, setting it alight, and everyone rushes for the lifeboats. Alfred turns to follow, but sees his dog trapped in the flames. He runs to his pet and picks him up, dodging the falling sails and mast, and goes go the edge of the ship, looking down at the lifeboat that had been lowered, containing Yao and the rest of the crew. Making a quick decision, he throws his dog to one of the sailors and readies to jump off, but the fire reaches the fireworks and one end of the ship explodes, causing the end with Alfred to sink. He's hit on the head by a falling piece of wood, and sinks under the waves, unconscious, as the lifeboat is pushed away by the current.

Arthur's eyes widen and he quickly dives down, swimming deeper until he finds he unconscious prince. He grabs Alfred by the forearm and swims upwards to the surface. Francis, who has by this point shown himself, and Mattie help Arthur swim Alfred to the shore. By the time they get to a beach, the storm has cleared, but the waterlogged prince is still out cold, limp in Arthur's arms. "... I-is he dead...?"

"I do not think so..." Francis says, following Arthur on shore. "Humans cannot breath underwater. He probably has some in his lungs."

"W-well, how do I-? Look! He's breathing..." Arthur touches the side of Alfred's face lightly. "He's so beautiful..." He begins singing a soft tune, and Alfred shifts slightly, turning his head to the side "Mnn..." Then, a loud barking stops Arthur, and he quickly disappears back into the water as Alfred's dog runs up to his master. He hides behind a rock, and peeks around it as the licking of the princes cheek rouses Alfred and he sits up slightly, petting the animal. "What was that voice...?" He looks around, and shakily gets to his feet as Yao runs up. "Alfred! Oh, Alfred you scared me, aru! You really delight in doing that, don't you, aru?"

"Sorry..." Alfred coughs, covering his mouth with his hand, then stumbles, woozy from being out so long "But... There was this voice... It was beautiful..."

"You've swallowed too much water, aru" Yao says, and puts a hand on Alfred's arm, steadying him "Let's go." Alfred nods slightly, and allows Yao to lead him back towards the castle. Arthur sighs, wishing he could've spent more time with the price, and goes back underwater. He is then stopped by two eels. "Wh-who are you...?" The two eels intertwine, then separate again in a elegant yet intimidating manor. The first one speaks in a hiss. "Do not be alarmed."

Arthur draws back slightly "I-I am not alarmed... But answer my question."

"We are here to offer you a chance to be with the human prince" the second says.

"The prince?" Arthur repeats, now curious rather than afraid. "You mean I have a chance to become human?"

"Come with us if you really want to know." With this, the two eels swim away. "Ignore them. Let's go home" Francis says. "..." Arthur propels himself after Flotsam and Jetsam, much to the dismay of Francis and Mattie, who can't swim fast enough to catch up with him.

The twin eels take Arthur to the deeper part of the ocean, and into a cave. "This... This is the sea witch's cave..." Arthur looks around, now wary of the decision he had made. Flotsam and Jetsam look back at him, then swim into the cave without another word. After a moment of consideration, he swims inside, where the sea witch awaits, reaching out to pet one of the eels. "Welcome, Prince Arthur." she says "I thought you would come" Arthur stiffens slightly, staying in the threshold. Ursula smirks "Come in. Don't be frightened, I only want to help you"

"..." Arthur swims in reluctantly. "Now, you have a crush on that human prince, don't you? But you have no chance of being with him the way you are." Arthur blushes faintly. "... E-exactly... There is no possible way I could be with Prince Alfred"

"Hmm... You have your looks. And human men don't like a lot of blabber. So I will give you legs... If you give me your voice."

"M-my voice...? ... But if I become human, I will never see my father again..."

"Your father? The one who won't let you do anything you want? I guess you'd rather let Alfred get away... And never see him again." Ursula says. "No, I-! ..." Arthur sighs. "Is there some... Catch I should know about?" he asks, and Ursula smirks, conjuring up a scroll. "Just that if you don't get him to kiss you in three days, you will lose your voice forever, and will return to the sea as one of my... Pets" she gestures to a place on the floor of the cave where distorted, deformed creatures attached to the rock writhe. "That won't happen, though." The scroll opens, and moves in front of Arthur, a pen appearing next to it. "Just sign your name on the bottom"

"..." Arthur hesitantly grasps the pen and signs his name on the line at the bottom of the contract in neat penmanship. The scroll snaps closed, and disappears in a flash of light that starts swirling around Arthur in a whirlwind. Another glowing light appears at his throat, and moves out through his mouth, seeming to sing with a pure note. The glowing water then converges on his tail, which pales from a bright green to flesh colored and splits into two, the fins at the bottom shrinking and turning into feet. Arthur's vision clouds over, and he blacks out.

When Arthur comes to, he has washed up on shallow water, the water covering the lower half of his body. He puts a hand to his head, sitting up, while Francis an Mattie rest exhausted in the water, having dragged Arthur to the edge of the shore. Arthur glances down, then blinks. He maneuvers himself an lifts a leg, wiggling his toes with an amazed expression. Nearby, Alfred walks down the beach, wanting to hear the enchanting voice again. He sees Arthur, and heads towards him. "Hey! Are you hurt?" he calls out, and Arthur looks over at him, quite dumbfounded that the prince is speaking to him. However, that moment is ruined when he realizes he is naked. Turning red and jumping, he moves to cover himself while motioning with his hand for Alfred to turn around. Also becoming red, Alfred takes off his coat and holds it out to Arthur. "Um... Here. You can use this." Arthur takes the coat. When he tries to stand up, however, he become unsteady and ends up falling on Alfred. "Whoa..." Alfred catches Arthur, an steadies him. "You must be exhausted..." he says, and Arthur looks up at him, opening his mouth to speak before remembering that he can't. "What's wrong...? Can't you speak?"

"..." Arthur slowly shakes his head, looking down, but Alfred smiles "Well, that's okay... Let's get you inside." He puts an arm around Alfred's shoulders to support him, and leads him towards the castle, where Arthur is taken to be bathed and clothed.

While Arthur is being pampered, Alfred is talking with Yao. "He doesn't speak, but I think he's a good guy..."

"Yes, I suppose so, aru... However, since he cannot speak, he is not the one you are looking for?"

"I..." Alfred shakes his head. "That could've just been a figment of my imagination. You said so"

"Well, that is true, aru. Respectable young men don't just swim around the ocean rescuing people then flutter off into oblivion." He says, then the doors open and Arthur, who is walking quite well now, and a maid enter. Arthur is now wearing royal clothing, the clothing of a noble that fits his frame very nicely. "Ah, now isn't he a vision?" the maid says, satisfied in her choice in clothing for Arthur. Alfred stares for a second, then crosses the room and offers his arm to Arthur, smiling. "Yes, he is. Now, Unnamed Beauty, would you allow me to escort you to dinner?" Arthur blinks, then nods and hooks his arm around Alfred's, smiling slightly. Alfred grins, and takes Arthur into the dining hall, where dinner has already been set out. Alfred leads Arthur to the seat next to the head of the table, and pulls the chair out for him. Arthur blushes faintly, and tries to thank Alfred, but just ends up nodding and sitting down. Alfred moves the chair back in so Arthur is close enough to the table, and takes his own seat. Arthur looks down and sees a fork. He touches the intricate silverware lightly, as he had found a fork in the sunken ship, and is now about to see it being used. He then glances at Alfred, who has begun eating, using the fork to hold down his food while he cuts it with another tool- a knife, then bringing it to his mouth and eating. Yao is doing the same, not looking at Arthur. He watches silently for a while, then picks up the fork and knife. He clumsily cuts the foot in front of him, then puts the piece of food in his mouth, chewing thoughtfully. Alfred glances up at him. "Would you like me to take you to the gardens after dinner? They're beautiful right now" Arthur smiles slightly, and nods eagerly. Alfred smiles back "I hope you like them"

After dinner, the two go outside and to the gardens, which are huge, with walkways, small courtyards, trees and flowers of all kinds, and a large pond with swans gliding across it. Arthur looks around, having never seen such scenery before, and is led to a bench near the pond. "I love it here... It's always so peaceful." he says, and Arthur nods, smiling slightly. A small yellow butterfly then lands on the tip of his nose, and the mute Briton seems taken aback, crossing his eyes to look at it. Alfred chuckles softly, and speaks quietly as well so as not to ruin the moment. "Make a wish." Arthur blinks, but slowly closes eyes and makes a silent wish, as he thinks the butterfly could very well be magic. The insect flutters off of his nose, and he opens his eyes. Alfred watches the butterfly fly away, then looks back at Arthur and smiles. "Don't let anyone know what it is, or it won't come true" Arthur is a little confused by this, but smiles slightly and nods. Alfred takes his hand, and turns it over in his own, seeming curious. "You're so pale... Have you stayed indoors your entire life?" he asks, and Arthur puts a finger to his chin, trying to think of an answer to the question. Slowly, he shakes his head. Alfred asks another question, seeming slightly amused and teasing. "Whats your secret, then? Are you magic?" At this, Arthur looks up at Alfred, raising an eyebrow, and the prince grins. "What? I'm just teasing you. Although if you had nodded, I wouldn't be surprised..." he stands up, and offers his hand. "It's getting dark. I'll show you to your room" Arthur takes Alfred's hand, much to his delight, and stands up, smiling slightly. Alfred starts to raise his other hand, possibly to touch Arthur's cheek, but drops it again and smiles sheepishly before leading him back inside the castle. "Your rooms are going to be next to mine, so if you need anything, don't be afraid to come get me, alright?" Arthur looks up at Alfred an nods, knowing he should probably go to his room. However, he doesn't want to let go of Alfred's hand. Alfred smiles slightly, and raises Arthur's hand, kissing the back of it softly. "Goodnight, Unnamed Beauty" He lets go, and bows slightly before going into his room. Arthur blushes faintly at the nickname, then inwardly sighs, and goes to his room, closing the door.

The next day, Alfred takes Arthur to a quiet lagoon filled with plant and animal life, and they get in a rowboat, going out to the middle of the water. Letting the boat drift for a bit, Alfred sets down the oars and looks at Arthur, tilting his head. "You must have a name..." Arthur nods, and opens his mouth, then remembers that he can't speak and closes it again. "Looks like I'll have to guess... Um... Ar... Nold?" He says a little awkwardly, smiling sheepishly again. Arthur makes a slight face at the name, and shakes his head. "Well... Does it start with an 'A'?" Alfred asks, hoping to make this easier on himself. Arthur smiles slightly and nods, and Alfred smiles in relief. "Great! So... A... Ar..." he furrows his brows slightly, trying to think of 'A' names. He guesses several wrong names, each time Arthur patiently shaking his head. Francis, who has found them, uses a cat tail to lean close to Alfred's ear. "Arthur! Il nom est Arthur!"

"Uh... Arthur?" Alfred says, looking back up at Arthur. Arthur smiles and nods, and Alfred grins. "Arthur! That works for you, and then I can call you Artie because it's cute, like you!" At this, Arthur blushes faintly and give Alfred an incredulous look.

Underwater, Francis is trying to think of a way to get the two to kiss. "M-maybe if you just leave them alone they'll get to that at their own pace..." Mattie says quietly. "Ah, Matthieu, as lovely as that sounds, we do not have time for them to go at their own pace..." he thinks, then smirks. "First, we have to create the mood..." He swims up, then climbs onto some of the tall grass. He chuckles. "Let's see, let's see... Perhaps some music?" he starts conducting, and immediately birds start singing. Alfred and Arthur look up, seeming amazed, then are drawn closer to each other, although Alfred doesn't seem to want to force himself on Arthur. Francis leans in and begins whispering in Alfred's ear. "There you see him." He chuckles "Sitting there across the way. He doesn't have a lot to say, but there's something about him. And you don't know why, but you're dying to try, you want to kiss the boy." Alfred, after a moment of deliberation (and wondering why the encouraging voice in his head is French) takes Arthur's hand and leans closer, about to kiss him. However, Ursula's eels have swum up under the boat, and now turn it over, sending the two into the water and ruining the moment. "Mon dieu!" Francis cries, and Alfred and Arthur swim upwards. "Uh... Eheheh... I guess we should get inside..." Alfred smiles weakly. Arthur nods, and they get back to shore, disappointed that their kiss was ruined.

Later, at night, Alfred goes out on his balcony and looks out at sea, wondering where that angelic voice had come from, when he had been on the beach after the shipwreck. He remembers what Yao had told him earlier, how Arthur was much better than any "dream guy", and that perhaps he should pursue him rather than waste his thoughts on the man with the lovely voice. Alfred thinks of how Arthur is amazed over the tiniest things, how his eyebrows are cute, and how he seems to genuinely enjoy Alfred's company just because it's him, and not his title. He smiles softly. "Arthur is perfect... Even though he can't talk, he's still perfect..." he straightens up, thinking that maybe after a while Arthur will be able to talk, or learn if he just doesn't know how, and turns to go back inside and confess his growing feelings for the mysterious Briton.

However, just as he does this, he hears the same voice that he heard when he was saved from the shipwreck, singing the exact same tune. Surprised, he turns around, simply curious, and looks back towards the beach, wanting to see the person who has saved his life just one time. Walking on the beach is a person with dark hair and eyes, wearing white and walking down the side of the beach with a mysterious yellowish aura around him. When Alfred sees him, hi own eyes become aglow and he is put under a spell, "falling in love" with the man without will.

The next day, Arthur gets up, feeling cheerful despite it being the last day he has, and his last chance. He leaves his room and starts to go down the stairs, but sees Alfred with another man, talking to Yao. Alfred's face is stoic, any trace of his cheerful aura completely gone, and his eyes are blank behind his glasses. His arm is around the strangers waist, however, and he is speaking. "...- the wedding as soon as possible."

"... If you are sure that's what you want, aru..." Yao says reluctantly. Arthur hesitantly walks up next to Yao, his chest aching as he approaches Alfred and the other man. "It's what we want." Alfred sys monotonously. The new man looks at Arthur, and smirks. "Oh, Arthur, this is... Jaden, aru..." Yao says quietly, "He's... Prince Alfred's fiancé... They're getting married today, aru..." Jaden chuckles darkly. "Yes, can you believe it, Alfred fell in love with me at first sight." He smirks again. Arthur's eyes widen when Jaden speaks, as he hears that it is his voice coming out of the others lips. His eyebrows furrow and he opens his mouth to curse and berate the other man, but clenches his fists instead, hands trembling slightly. "Come, love. We have so much to do before the wedding." Jaden says, and leads Alfred away. Yao looks at Arthur apologetically, and follows them. Arthur turns away, and rushes off, tears pricking at his eyes.

Later, the ship that will hold the wedding between Alfred and Jaden sets off, without Arthur. He sits alone on the beach, depressed and resigned to spending the rest of his life in Ursula's cave, when he notices Mattie calling out to him. "Arthur! Listen to me!" Arthur doesn't look up, giving no sign of hearing Mattie, but he presses on "Arthur, Jaden is Ursula! After she marries Alfred, she's going to kill him! You have to stop it!" Arthur slowly looks up, green eyes furious. He jumps into the water, but can't swim well with his legs. Francis sends down sim barrels. "Grab onto that and start kicking so you get used to swimming with legs. Matthieu will help you. I'll go stall the wedding, there is no amour in it!" he goes off, and Arthur swims after the ship.

Francis gets on the ship, and ends up in the kitchen, where the chef (also French) is cooking. He tries to sneak around the various pots and pans, but is found by the chef. "Mon dieu! You wretched crab! I will get you!" He swings his knife at Francis, who yelps and dodges. "J'aime les nourritures de francaise, but I do not want to be part of it!" He screams, and runs away, escaping through the open door.

Arthur catches up to the ship, which has stopped, and climbs aboard. The priest has just ended his sermon concerning the wonderfulness of marriage, and Francis catches up with Arthur, having rallied the sea creatures and birds. "Prince Alfred, do you take Jaden to be your lawfully wedded husband, for as long a you both shall live?" Alfred opens his mouth to say the fatal words, but at that moment, the animals of the sea attack, causing havoc among the guests. Arthur runs up and yanks the necklace with the shell containing his voice from Jadens neck. Jaden grabs for it, and it falls to the deck, breaking. A light emanates from it, and goes into Arthur's mouth, restoring his voice and breaking the spell on Alfred at the same time. Alfred looks at Arthur in bewilderment, because as the light had returned to the Briton, it had sung the same song. Arthur puts a had to his throat, and looks at Alfred. "Alfred..."

"It's you... It really was you all along... I'm such an idiot..."

"Oui, a huge idiot! But you have to kiss him now or lose him forever!" Francis yells over the chaos, and Alfred draws Arthur close, but at that moment the sun sets. Arthur's eyes widen, and he changes back into a merman in Alfred's arms. Ursula laughs. "You're too late! So long, lover boy!" She drags Arthur overboard. Alfred runs to the edge, trying to catch Arthur's hand. "No! Arthur!" But, he is too late, and the two sea beings disappear under the waves.

Underwater, Triton goes to Ursula's home. "Release Arthur!"

"If it isn't King Triton." she cackles. "Father! Father, I'm sorry!" Arthur yells. "I'm not going to repeat myself again. Let my son go."

"No can do. We had a deal." She conjures up the contract Arthur had signed, and Triton takes it, reading it over. "... Then take me in his place."

"Father... Father, no!" Arthur cries, and Ursula smirks, conjuring another contract. "Just sign at the bottom" she says smugly. Triton looks at Arthur, and takes the pen, signing his name. "Father, stop!" Ursula laughs as Triton withers to nothing, becoming a polyp and losing his authority. Ursula takes his crown and places it upon her head. "It's mine! It's finally mine!" She cries victoriously, and cackles. "You... You monster!" Arthur yells as Ursula picks up the trident, and rushes at her, pushing her into a rock. Ursula retaliates by hitting Arthur with the trident, and uses her newfound magic to grow into a large, chaotic being, do big that the top half of her body goes above the water. She laughs again, and begins drawing circles above her head with the trident, creating a maelstrom and sending Alfred's ship spiraling. The prince grabs the wheel, and tries to regain control over his ship. Arthur tries to swim towards the boat, but ends up becoming trapped in the whirlpool. Ursula attempts to blast him with a bolt if energy from the trident, but Arthur manages to dodge it. Alfred sees this, and becomes angry. As the wind had already broken the bowsprit, leaving it sharp and jagged, he decides to use this as a weapon, steering the ship around the edge of the whirlpool to gain speed. As soon as he's in front of Ursula again, he steers the ship directly at her, ramming the broken bowsprit into her chest. Ursula roars with pain, and starts to fall as she is impaled. The force of the impact throws Alfred from the ship and into the water, and he struggles to stay afloat while also trying to get to Arthur and see if he's okay. "Arthur!"

"Alfred! Head to the shore!" Arthur cries, but as Ursula sinks below the waves the wind slows, and the sky clears, the sun shining through the breaks in the clouds. Alfred treads water, and laughs as he looks up at the sky. "It's sunny again!"

As Ursula sinks ever deeper into the water, the trident slips from her dead grasp and falls back to Triton and he, along with the other polyps, are restored to their original forms. The liberated merpeople swim up, reaching the surface just as Alfred pulls Arthur into his arms. Arthur hugs Alfred back "Alfred... Are you alright?" he asks. "Yeah... But I was so stupid... Can you forgive me, Arthur?"

"Of course I can, Alfred... You couldn't have known..." Alfred sighs with relief, and kisses Arthur softly. "That was long overdue..."

"So you're the one Arthur left me for." Triton says, coming closer. "Father..." Arthur says, and breaks apart from Alfred to hug Triton, as he was terribly worried about him. Triton hugs him back, having been worried about him as well. "You love him, don't you...?"

"... Yes, father, I am. But I am naive... I did not mean to endanger you or the whole of the ocean. I am forever sorry..." Arthur hangs his head, and Triton puts a hand on his shoulder. "You didn't know. I don't blame you for anything." He smiles gently. "And you should spend your life with this human, on land." He uses his magic, and the water swirls around Arthur, turning him back into a human. Triton also fixes the ship, and water spouts push Alfred and Arthur (who is magically clothed as well) on board.

Arthur laughs happily, and throws his arms around Alfred, who returns his embrace. "Artie... I love you" Alfred says, smiling. Arthur leans up, and kisses Alfred softly "I love you too, Alfred."

~Epilogue~

Alfred and Arthur were married later that day, and spent the rest of their lives together, going out to sea often to visit Triton. As they grew old, their love never faded, and they lived in happiness.


End file.
